- "TIE pilots don't mix up their tactics too much. You see the same maneuvers over and over. Don't get me wrong—they can be effective… but not a lot of variation. Guess it's how they're trained. But over Grail City… they were exuberant. Taking risks I'd never seen them take before."
- ―Jessika Pava recalls the performance of First Order TIE pilots during the Battle of Grail City
First Order TIE Fighter Pilots or First Order TIE pilots were skilled pilots who served the First Order, hunting down enemy vessels and protecting space around installations and warships in their advanced TIE/fo space superiority fighters.[4] Elite pilots had access to TIE/sf space superiority fighters, two-seater TIE craft equipped with enhanced weaponry and sensor systems.[8]
Equipment[]
First Order TIE pilots wore a uniform consisting of a black jumpsuit with a chestplate with life support gear, pauldrons on the shoulders, gauntlets, a utility belt, boots, and a helmet with goggles. The helmet had a flexible gas transfer hose, which connected to the pilot's life support system.[1] The helmet's goggles also had an interior viewplate that projected combat data to the pilots.[9]
Pilots were typically issued with a SE-44C blaster pistol,[1] which could be carried in a holster on their belt when not in use.[2]
Training[]
Since the conclusion of the Galactic Civil War had seen the various flight academies under the Empire returned to local institutions, the TIE pilots of the First Order were trained directly within First Order-owned ships, whether they be newly created ships or Imperial survivors of the war. Largely because they could not afford to train an endless supply of pilots,[9] the First Order treated its fighter pilots as important parts of its war machine instead of disposable assets; unlike its predecessor. Potential pilots were identified as children and given rigorous training, often within the corridors of warships, then tested ruthlessly throughout their careers to ensure their reflexes, visual acuity and coordination measured up.[4]
Due to the nature of their training, many of them never set foot on a planet during this time.[10] However, the First Order was also willing to recruit regular citizens into their starfighter corps,[11] training them to be TIE pilots.[12] The First Order's pilots had a higher life expectancy than their Imperial equivalents; largely due to their not having to be burdened with a restrictive galactic budget.[13]
History[]
Pilots who demonstrated both exceptional skill and unwavering loyalty were promoted to elite ranks within First Order during the Cold War.[14] Major Elrik Vonreg was a pilot who answered directly to Captain Phasma.[3] TN-3465 was recruited by Phasma for the hunt for Rivas.[15] "Quickdraw" was a pilot who was once involved in an engagement amid the wreckage of another starship.[16]
Appearances[]
Non-canon appearances[]
- LEGO Star Wars: The Resistance Rises — "Poe to the Rescue"
- LEGO Star Wars: The Resistance Rises — "The Trouble with Rathtars"
- LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- LEGO STAR WARS: Celebrate the Season — "Sithmas Battle"
- LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
Sources[]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Star Wars Resistance — "The Recruit"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 First Order TIE Fighter Pilots in the Databank (backup link)
- ↑ Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary states that the First Order was publicly formed five years before the Starkiller Incident, which Star Wars: Galactic Atlas dates to 34 ABY. Therefore, the First Order's official formation which include the formation of First Order TIE fighter pilot, must have happened in 29 ABY.
- ↑ Star Wars: The Last Jedi: The Visual Dictionary
- ↑ Poe Dameron 30
- ↑ First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter in the Databank (backup link)
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary
- ↑ Star Wars: X-Wing Second Edition — TIE/fo Fighter Expansion Pack (Card: Epsilon Squadron Cadet—TIE/fo Fighter)
- ↑ Star Wars Resistance — "Into the Unknown"
- ↑ Star Wars Resistance — "Live Fire"
- ↑ Star Wars: X-Wing Second Edition — TIE/fo Fighter Expansion Pack (Card: Zeta Squadron Pilot—TIE/fo Fighter)
- ↑ Star Wars: X-Wing Second Edition — TIE/fo Fighter Expansion Pack (Card: Omega Squadron Ace—TIE/fo Fighter)
- ↑ Captain Phasma 4
- ↑ Star Wars: X-Wing Miniatures Game — Special Forces TIE Expansion Pack (Card: "Quickdraw"—TIE/sf Fighter)